MY LAUNDRY ROOM MAKEOVER

When I browse the internet or Pinterest one of my favorite things to find is room makeovers. I love the before and after pictures and finding out all of the details about how a room was completely transformed! So this week I’m going to treat you lovely readers to a room makeover reveal of my laundry room!

Let’s start with the ugly before photos:

Looks like a boring (and messy!) tract home laundry room doesn’t it?

So here’s the after:

Here’s a breakdown of the changes I made…

the walls

In my opinion, the laundry room is a great room to have some fun with and do something a little different or experiment with something new. Why? Because if it doesn’t end up looking as great as you thought it would, no one will ever see it but you. Plus, it’s not usually a room you’re in all the time everyday (if you are, well I’m sorry to hear that! Get out, there’s a whole world to see out there!) so a bold different look doesn’t become overwhelming.

While I didn’t get too crazy in my laundry room, I did choose a wall color that was kind of unusual for me. It’s a particular shade of mint green and while I probably wouldn’t put this color anywhere else in my house, it was fun and cheerful and coordinated with the fabric in the room so it worked.

I tried probably a total of fifteen sample colors on this wall before finally settling on this color. So I think it’s a little funny that the color I ended up choosing is called Best Bet (by Clark + Kensington).

I also used this room for my first attempt at installing board and batten wainscoting. I was going to install it all around the room, but realized that so much of my work would be hidden behind the washer, dryer and sink that I decided it wasn’t worth the time and money it would take to do that. So I focused on the only wall that would actually highlight the board and batten treatment—the blank wall opposite the washer and dryer.

It used to be just a plain wall…

Now it looks like this…

I cut and installed it all, and caulked and painted it a nice glossy white.

If you happen to be looking for a detailed tutorial on installing board and batten walls this is a great source.

the pedestal

Raising the washer and dryer up on a pedestal was a big priority for me. I was getting tired of bending down to get the clothes out of the washer and dryer all the time. So we built our own wood and MDF pedestal using this tutorial. However, we made a few changes to it by adjusting the size to fit the room and changing the decorative trim in order to give it a more minimal look.

I use the term “we” because this was a project where I had to call upon my husband for some help. I needed his strength for some of the construction and also for bringing it into the laundry room and setting it into place. WARNING IF YOU DECIDE TO MAKE THIS PEDESTAL: That sucker is heavier than it looks.

the shelving

I also hated the old wire shelving in the room and knew it was time to rip it out and replace it with real quality wood shelving. I cut and installed this with some help from my dad, and it was the beginning of a long ongoing project for me of ripping out the wire shelving and installing custom wood shelving in all of the closets in our home… all eleven of them!! I’ve only gotten half of them done so far.

the sink

This was my oh-so-ugly laundry room sink…

I really wanted to replace the it with a nice farmhouse sink and cabinet, but I knew that would be pushing me over my budget. So I figured the best and cheapest way to make the sink look somewhat attractive was to put a skirt of fabric around it.

I spent weeks searching for a fabric that had the colors and print I had in mind, but I couldn’t come up with anything. I finally expanded my search to curtain panels, bedding and shower curtains that might work knowing I could cut them down and turn them into a sink skirt.

I happened across this shower curtain in the clearance section of Bed Beth & Beyond…

I liked the medallion print, the sturdy polyester fabric and the $11 price!

I cut it, hemmed it, pleated it and glued a ribbon to the top to give it a finished look.

the lighting

This was the light fixture in the room when we moved in:

Yup, that nasty builders grade light fixture needed to go!! But I couldn’t find an affordable fixture that I felt worked in the room, so I decided to make my own custom design from wood dowels which I posted a tutorial for here. A little gray spray paint later and it was ready to hang.

the accessories

I finished off the room with some decorative items and cute storage bins for the laundry and cleaning supplies.

I used to have these wood photo frames in another room and I was no longer using them so I spray painted them gray and gave them some new life in this room. I framed some old sketches I made from when I studied abroad in Europe.

UPDATE: Some of these photos show a rug that I added to this room a little later. Learn more about that here.

the cost

As for the budget, I knew I didn’t want to spend much on this room, it’s just the laundry room. But I also knew we needed to do some major projects like building the pedestal and shelving and that’s where the bulk of the money went. I spent $374 total on this room.

Here’s a list of everything I changed and a breakdown of what I spent:

The walls — $75

The pedestal — $125

The shelving — $71

The sink — $14

The lighting — $48

The accessories — $41

Thanks so much for reading about my first room reveal! Let me know what you think in the comments.

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4 thoughts on “MY LAUNDRY ROOM MAKEOVER”

Your room is gorgeous!! I love the color (But I am a huge fan of color! I have an aqua kitchen!), and the thing that caught my eye at the very beginning was the light. I love that you did it yourself. It is amazing! Great first room reveal! 🙂 Have a good weekend! ~Brooke